VIPERLAB: EU project aims to boost perovskite solar industry in Europe
VIPERLAB is funded under the European Programme for Research and Innovation Horizon 2020 (Grant No 101006715).
HZB runs state-of-the-art laboratories (here HySPRINT) to advance research on perovskite solar cells. © P. Dera / HZB
Also the EMIL lab at HZB will host VIPERLAB projects. © S. Grunze/HZB
The HZB is coordinating a major European collaborative project to open up new opportunities for the European solar industry. The VIPERLAB project involves 15 renowned research institutions from Europe, as well as Switzerland and Great Britain. It will be funded within the framework of the EU's Horizon 2020 programme for the next three and a half years with a total of 5.5 million euros, from which the HZB will receive just under 840,000 euros.
Perovskite semiconductors enable extremely cheap and powerful solar cells. Many research results on this class of materials are obtained in European laboratories. For example, working groups at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) have already achieved several world records with perovskite solar cells. Now the HZB is coordinating a major European collaborative project to open up new opportunities for the European solar industry.
VIPERLAB stands for „Fully connected virtual and physical perovskite photovoltaics Lab“. With VIPERLAB, the participating research institutions want to accelerate the development of perovskite PV technology in Europe and promote technology transfer to industry. To this end, they want to establish a close dialogue with the emerging perovskite industry in Europe, both with the help of new initiatives and with more established players such as the European solar industry association Solar Power Europe.
The participating institutions are among the best in European perovskite research. Within VIPERLAB, they will facilitate access to their laboratories and infrastructures so that research teams from public institutions or industry can work with the optimal equipment and methods. A database on materials and building elements will also be established, incorporating information on long-term performance and environmental and economic impacts. This database will enable evidence-based commercial and policy decisions.
Through close collaboration and tailor-made research services, VIPERLAB aims to give European industry a knowledge edge along the entire value chain.
VIPERLAB is funded under the European Programme for Research and Innovation Horizon 2020 (No 101006715).
- New method shows how molecular switches are influenced by their neighborsResearchers at Friedrich Schiller University Jena and the Helmholtz Centre Berlin (HZB) have, for the first time, been able to directly observe how the environment surrounding a molecular switch influences its electronic structure. Molecular switches are molecules that can be switched between two states by external influences such as changes in temperature—similar to a switch with the positions »On« and »Off«. Such molecules are being investigated as potential building blocks for future data storage devices or sensor materials. Using magnetic-field-dependent terahertz spectroscopy, the researchers have now, for the first time, been able to distinguish whether neighbouring molecules in a material are in the same or different states. The results have been published in the journal »Angewandte Chemie International Edition«.
- 3D magnetic field experiment at BESSY II takes spintronics a step further(Fe0.63Ni0.3Pd0.07)3P or FNPP is a magnetic material that exhibits complex magnetic structures even at room temperature. This makes the material of interest for spintronics, a field that could enable data processing with significantly lower energy consumption. One potential application is novel magnetic memory devices. However, generating and modifying the desired structures in a controlled manner remains a challenge to date. A new study led by HZB has now taken a step forward in this regard. They demonstrated at the worldwide unique VEKMAG-Station at BESSY II, that a tiny external B-field in the plane of the magnetic patterns is sufficient to change them.
- Thin nickel films boost green hydrogen productionUltra-thin nickel oxide coatings can significantly improve the performance of anion exchange membrane (AEM) water electrolysers, a promising technology for producing green hydrogen. This was demonstrated by a team led by HZB scientist Dr. Michelle Browne. The results show that a nickel oxide film only 10 nanometres thick outperformed conventional nickel oxide powder electrodes while using less than 1% of the catalyst material. The study is published in the Journal of Materials Chemistry A,